CANBERRA, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Floriade, Australia's biggest celebration of Spring, opened for its 38th annual edition in the national capital of Canberra on Saturday.
The month-long festival officially opened at Commonwealth Park in central Canberra at 9:30 a.m. local time on Saturday, and is expected to contribute over 60 million Australian dollars (39.8 million U.S. dollars) to the local economy of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) before finishing on Oct. 12.
Over one million flowers have been planted to transform Commonwealth Park into a space of discovery and learning to celebrate the 2025 theme of Science and Nature, organizers say, and another 300,000 bulbs have been provided for community groups to plant around Canberra.
Andrew Barr, the Chief Minister of the ACT, said on Friday that the government is hopeful that 250,000 locals and 280,000 tourists would attend the festival over the month after Floriade 2024 drew over 470,000 visitors.
"It's really a Canberra spring institution, and for many people, it does really provide the trigger to get outside again after what are often very cold Canberra winters," he told reporters.
Floriade will be open with free entry between 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. every day until Oct. 12. ■
